SPRING NOTES: Torres Knows Bo; Bumgarner dominates Rangers

Andres Torres drew gasps from the crowd at Surprise Stadium on Monday when he snapped his bat over his knee following a bases-loaded strikeout. The day’s starter, Madison Bumgarner, surely could accomplish the same feat of strength.

But Bumgarner, revered in the clubhouse for his raw strength, doesn’t anticipate imitating Bo Jackson and Torres anytime soon.

“Hopefully I’m not ever that mad,” he said.

There was no reason for Bumgarner to be upset about anything that happened on the mound against the Texas Rangers. After an inconsistent start to his spring, Bumgarner dominated, giving up just one hit in four innings. He walked one and struck out four, and called it a “step in the right direction.”

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“Each time out has been a little better,” Bumgarner said. “It’s getting time now at the end of the spring where you want to be more game-ready instead of working on stuff.”
Bumgarner was pleased that he got to face a Rangers lineup that included a few regulars. Of his four strikeouts, three were looking, including a pair by Jurickson Profar, widely regarded as the best prospect in baseball.

“He threw the ball great,” catcher Buster Posey said. “He moved the ball to both sides of the plate as well as I’ve seen this spring. The ball was coming out on a good plane. He was working downhill.”

Bumgarner wasn’t the only one to impress the reigning MVP. Asked about Torres, Posey smiled.

“That was impressive, wasn’t it?” he said. “That’s a strong guy to say the least.”

Torres said he has never done that in a game before, but he did it in a tunnel one time last year. He was worried that it was a bad look, but said he simply got mad because he wanted to bring the runners in.

Bochy, having managed the famously friendly Torres before, was surprised by the moment.

“That’s the first time I’ve seen him snap like that,” Bochy said. “He needs some playing time. We’ve got to get him out there as much as we can without wearing him down.”

Torres had just two previous at-bats this spring and had ice over his oblique as he spoke to reporters, but he said his side wasn’t bothering him during the game. He doesn’t anticipate the oblique being a problem going forward.

Yeah, but how’s the knee?

“My knee is fine,” he said, laughing. “The bat is broken.”

— Tony Abreu actually does have a knee issue. He made his spring debut today but said he still feels pain just above the knee when he runs. Bochy said Abreu is unlikely to play tomorrow.

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If you haven’t noticed, it’s not like anyone has run away with this utility infielder race. But Nick Noonan looks poised to make a late push.

Noonan, mostly a second baseman and shortstop up to this point, made another spectacular play at third, stabbing a scorched one-hopper and making a strong throw from the edge of the grass. He also hit his second triple in three games. The average (.143) is still way down, but Bochy said the staff will remain open minded in the coming weeks.

“We’ll see what our needs are as we get towards the end,” he said.

Noonan has played just 37 minor league games at third, but he said he’s getting comfortable at the spot, and that’s key because that utility guy may sometimes replace Sandoval late in games.

“It’s coming along,” he said.

— From colleague Darren Sabedra, a roundup of the Fighting Bam Bams. Some of the Giants coaches had hoped that Hensley Meulens and Team Netherlands could pull out a victory in their bracket, thus clinching a visit to Scottsdale Stadium on Thursday. But the Giants announced this afternoon that Japan will come in for the exhibition game regardless, and Yusmeiro Petit likely will start (for the Giants).

Given the crush of Japanese media that showed for Tanaka vs. Darvish today, it’d be pretty funny if Bochy gave Tanaka a day off on Thursday, no? Maybe.

— Here and here are two quotes I hope to be able to tweet out some day. On that note, you can follow our coverage on Twitter: @AlexPavlovic

— Sounds like the Dodgers have at least a tiny problem with Zack Greinke. Posey was asked about the elbow issue and said he hadn’t heard about it. When Andrew Baggarly asked Posey if San Francisco has a better rotation than Los Angeles, Posey smiled and slowly said, “There should be some fun games.” As John Shea pointed out as we were heading back up to the press box, “You’re fishing in the wrong pond.” Yep.

— Heath Hembree bounced back from a rough two-homer outing to strike out three and walk one in his inning of work.

“It’s good for him to bounce back — that’s what you look for,” Bochy said. “I thought he threw well. He threw some good sliders, too.”

I thought Marty Lurie made a great point about Hembree yesterday: He won’t be here on opening day, but when he comes up, he ain’t going back down.

Hunter Pence, fresh off a Merc feature, hit a double and triple and drove in two runs. Javier Lopez and Dan Runzler each threw scoreless frames and Juan Perez ended the game with a great running catch in center.

Grienke is going to be fine. Anyone that wishes someone harm because of the uniform they are wearing is dumb as nails. I hate the Dodger more than anyone but I want to beat them with all their pieces working.
Tell your friends. It is not ok to root for injuries. It’s lame as hell.

While E. CB – Dodger Hater

Maybe Lasorda. It’s ok to root for him to fall down. No one else. Just Lasorda.

And Cey. I hate that guy. All right so it is ok to root for Lasorda and Cey to fall down but no one else.

Anti-Lasorda

I don’t root for injuries, but I wouldn’t stop laughing for a short period if Greinke ended up needing UCL replacement and didn’t pitch for the Dodgers this year.

There’s a difference between wishing ill on someone and revelling in the irony of a situation. We don’t have any voodoo dolls here. Although our momument to Jobu is close…..

Grienke, regardless of the ourtcome of his elbow, will have plenty of time to make us eat crow. Tommy John or not….. He’s with the Bums another 7 years.

I would just enjoy the irony if he trended out to be a Zito type investment for the Bums for the next 5…….

~YMMV

While E. CB – Dodger Hater

And Hitler. It is ok to root for Hitler to pull a hammie. But that’s it. Hitler, Cey and Lasorda. No one else!

dgg

Earlier today I read that Don Mattingly said that Zach Grienke’s “MRI came back clean.” I started laughing. Usually when doctors tell patients a test came back clean, they’re talking about UAs or tox screens. So here’s the latest on Grienke:

He was dx with inflammation in the back of his right elbow and given an injection of anti-inflammatory medication and platelet-rich plasma. Then he’s going to rest for a few days before starting back up with a progressive throwing program.

The MRI “showed there was no structural damage to the ligaments or tendons of the elbow.”

Any ill, non-life threatening, non-long term consequences, on Tommy is always funny…….

He’s like 100 years old, hips don’t do to well with falls at that age. I’m thinking like sudden onset incontinence while he wathces the World Series banner being raised at AT&T for the second time in three years….

Anti: Slobodan Milosovich was not the bad guy that the controlled Western media made him out to be. The bankster strategy was to destabilize and break up Yugoslavia. It worked. Geopolitics is a specialty of mine, even outranking Giants baseball in that regard.

Back to the game: Appears that 3 of the five starters are back on their game as both Cain and now Bumgarner have thrown ST gems and Vogie seems to have come along nicely in the WBC. One is never certain about Zito till the World Championship flag has been raised. Timmy should have plenty of incentive to get his back together this season.

The Hembree and Runzler outings were most encouraging and though Gaudin did not sparkle, neither did the Rangers exactly light him up ~ about what you would expect from a swing-man.

Lefty

I get that we’re probably stuck with Gaudin, like it or not. I’m just saying I don’t like it, and I predict all of us are not going to like it before too long. Nor am I campaigning for Petit after watching him throw batting practice–I mean, the first two innings, against KC on Saturday.

Ugh, I wish we had another real starter. The Dodgers have eight. The A’s have seven. The Diamondbacks have at least seven. Why can’t we have six? Fingers crossed that the starters stay healthy and effective and we don’t need a long man very much. And that Heston and Kickham come along fast in AAA so they’re ready if there’s an emergency.

moooooooooooose

Chili Davis

channelclemente

While,

me, I root for irony, the more expensive the better. As a matter of shear unsubstantiated rumor, the Dodgers called to ask about Lohse before Greinke landed in LA.

demp28

I was at the game today. Nice four innings from MadBum; even after throwing 29 pitches in the first inning. Was very impressed with Belt’s hit. Seeing the ball much better. Great crowd today. 10, 000 plus. Have to say it was 50-50. Oh yeah, the chicken cheesesteaks (yes you heard correctly), is the best meal at Surprise Stadium.Better pitching staff? Hmmm. Who’s got rings twice the past three years? As Belt said: “You can’t buy chemistry. “

Lefty

cc: Lohse might be desperate enough by now to agree to be the #9 starter on the Dodgers’ staff.

channelclemente

Lefty,

do Lohse and Greinke have the same agent?

I wonder how Bumgarner’s 2 seam figured into todays efforts.

Lefty

I’m never happy to hear about a player’s injury. But here’s the thing about Greinke’s elbow and other Dodger injuries or misfortunes. When you’re the neighborhood bully, no one feels sorry for you when you get an owie. Everyone immediately thinks karma/ schadenfreude/pick your foreign word. No one outside of LA will feel an ounce of sympathy.

Talked to a few Dodger fans while in AZ this weekend. They don’t see things this way, of course. In their minds, they’re owed a run of good fortune and success because of the McCourt years…and I think many of us could sympathize IF their owners hadn’t gone on such an obscene spending spree, making a mockery of the game and any semblance of sportsmanship.

The most interesting guy we met was a Canadian in our hotel bar. He’d just returned from the Canada/Mexico game. He said it got so scary in the stands after the brawl that he decided it was time to go.

Also met a Cardinals fan at the airport. Usually Cards’ fans are good for a nice chat, but he’s not over their collapse in the NLCS; this one was bitter. “Your run is over,” he snarled at me. We will see, Mr. Red Bird. We will see.

channelclemente

Lefty,

too bad, in many ways the Cards and Giants are kindred teams. If I were him, I’d be a little less sanguine given the loss of Carpenter, who single handedly won there last WS, IMO. What a warrior.

cc: Yeah, he was pretty bummed about the loss of Carpenter. Agreed–that guy’s an old school stud, just like his buddy Doc Halladay. However, the fan’s very pumped about their young guys.

I’m a bit surprised they haven’t gone after Lohse and/or Theriot yet given the injuries to Carp and Furcal.

Maybe I induced the snarling by bringing up Holliday and Scutaro…

Richard in Winnipeg

I’D like to know what exactly is wrong with Gaudin?
I suspect no one including myself expected much from the Giants signing Vogie in 2011.
His previous years numbers ( at Lehigh Valley and Salt Lake in 2010 ) after arriving back from the orient were nothing to scream at.
Gaudin’s number in 2012; were at major league he is 5 years younger then Vogie. I love Vogie.
I’d put my money on Giants managements call here.

channelclemente

Lefty,

Rumor is the Cards are shopping for Andrus or Dee Gordon as a SS replacement for Furcal. I wonder if we have anyone useful enough at SS to get them to turn loose of one of those good arms they have in A or AA ball. They’re quitely desperate.

Lefty

What’s wrong with Gaudin is he’s no good. His MLB career ERA is 4.63 with a WHIP of 1.51. He walks too many people. And he pitched 46 games for the Marlins last year and they didn’t want him anymore. The MARLINS.

I love Vogey, too, but the same dumpster-diving that got us Vogey also got us Clay Hensley, Brad Penny, and another amazing year of Guillermo Mota. It doesn’t always work out.

Richard in Winnipeg

Lefty;
With all due respect, I disagree.
Let’s see what happens.
But, I disagree with you.
I will leave it at that.

ClutchUp

Lefty, Spring Training innings are only to work out kinks. If Gaudin is still bad in June so be it, but naming players after others IE Hensley and Mota is also futile.

When Gardy or Raggs pulls the plug we can use the terrible word.

Spring Training is like exhibition Warriors basketball in Hawaii.

Nobody cares about the results. They have a template of goals: pitch to certain spots. Miss those spots=Balls are hit HARD.

you don’t have to buy!

Also Any Giants 6th starter is already in the organization.

Foothills Ryan

Lower ERA in 2013: Gaudin or Zito ?

It’s a coin flip. When the dust settles and opening day arrives, take a glance at swing men around the league. They should all be hauntingly familiar.

Gaudin and his sinker will look a lot better at sea level plus humidity.

Lefty

If I’m wrong about Gaudin, I’ll be happy. He’s not on the team yet, so I don’t have to buy. If he makes the roster, I’ll bite my tongue and hope for the best.

Clutch: I only brought up the other names because Richard suggested that maybe the brilliant success story of Vogelsong means Gaudin will be one, too. I was merely pointing out that there are other counterexamples.

However, Gaudin’s track record (not in spring training) speaks for itself. He doesn’t have to be compared to anyone else. You can interpret that track record as you like.

channelclemente

Foothills,

excellent point, about sinkerball pitchers in AZ.

Foothills Ryan

Gaudin only looks bad because he’s not Guillermo Mota. Mota was a terrific swing man. Could spot start, give you four. Could even work the ninth if you needed him to. Rubber arm, rolled out of bed throwing 90+.

===

CC, waaay off topic, but I successfully demucked the guard column last Fri. Not the separation column, but the 2 cm bit that comes before so you don’t eff up the 600 dollar column. I put it in a sonic bath with MeOH. Then I flipped it around and pumped H20 mobile phase the opposite flow direction with injections of MeSO4. Cleaned my peaks right up. Huzzah!!

stealYOURface

Altitude has nothing to do with a sinker. Location,that’s another story.

@ moooose
yea I saw Chile break his bat once… got my attention.
also saw him try a straight steal of home once- it was like he couldn’t stop himself.
one of my favorite giants- glad he’s with the A’s.

ClutchUp

Lefty: our interpretations on track records are similar. Starting pitchers turning their careers around sometimes differ from middle, long men and closers.

Gaudin was bad with the Fish but being terrible sometimes includes a players mind set and also which methodology his then and now current pitching coaches are using. With Raggs he has a pressure point-seams guy guru and with Gardy he has a guy who was a bulldog on the bump and kept his team in the game with his B- and C- games.

Gaudin might fail again but with Tidrow beating the bushes and Gardy and Raggs in the dugout or pen, Chad will have a shot.

With pitchers who land with the Giants, I discount some of their trak record.

YMMV…

brabon99

im sorry, but when someone buys an expensive lemon….i laff at them

i wish no ill will on zack, but i hope he ends up on the 60 day…cuz i think the whole idea of trying to buy a championship is sick…especially when the guy who you have put in charge of baseball ops said that the org was going to focus and building from within….looks like the magic camp won out and they are gonna go the lakers way…and i hate the lakers

im concerned for torres…nicest guy in the world, who puts way too much pressure on himself….i think he should start doing yoga with zito

Mo p

The lakers way wins more championships than any other team in any other sport. It’s similar to how eddie d ran the 49ers. The dodgers are running things like the Yankees, not the lakers.

You bay area folk love to hate the lakers, but fail to field a decent basketball team ever, and even have to hire a laker (Jerry west) to help you out.

Gaudin appears in line to win the job. Funny that the utility infielder spot is wide open. I really think pegeuro has done enough to get an OF spot.

South City Jim

Barry Zito had a big event at Frasher’s in Scottsdale for Strike Out For Troops tonight. I’m watching a couple of Marines being interviewed on Chronicle Live right now, including Sgt. Kimmell, who threw out the first pitch in game 2 of the WS. Awesome stuff!

ClutchUp

SCJim: Sgt Kimmel really chucked the old pill with major velocity that night.

Say Hey kid standing to his right and Zito to his left all the time Willie looking for Sharpie to autograph the ball.

Priceless!

ClutchUp

Jim we played at not so beautiful El Camino HS’s field today. Remeber before Lawndale Drive we’d get foul balls in Holy Cross Cemetary.

Chuckle…

pacman68

I’ve seen the future with Gaudin pitching. Let’s just say you better hide your television sets. The guy is going to kick us all in the nuts. Except you Lefty.

Giants need a number 6 starter. Been screaming since November. Please Sabean!! Find someone in the dumpster.

The Oracle

Adding to my Belt will be an All Star prediction, I’m now letting all of you know that the Dodgers will not be a major factor in the division race. Vastly overpaid and on the downward career slide doesn’t get it done.

Foothills Ryan

Belt making the All-Star sounds great! But how many firstbasemen make the squad? Votto starts and its not even close (Let’s also pretend they fix the SF Vote-bot and it’s a fair process in 2013).

That’s going to be an uphill Battle for Belt. #’s wise, he should fall behind Gonzo, Goldie, Craig, LaRoche, and possibly Freeman and Rizzo. I think Goldschmidt has a big year in the middle for AZ. He seems to be really putting it together. 20 SBs last year also. D ain’t bad either.

But, Bochy could sneak Belt on. His prerogative, fulfilling the Oracle’s vision just like he did for good ol’ Oedipus.

Foothills Ryan

I’m officially worried that Peguero’s hot spring start will fizzle as the big league pitchers assume more spring innings and hone their stuff. But, I think the Giants should take their time with Torres. 2 million still feels like a charitable gesture, but it couldn’t happen to a more deserving guy. Torres starts year on DL. Peguero gets a chance out of chute. Gillespie the #5.

If I was the lineup setter, my best hitter with best OBP would bat third. I’d move Crawford to 7th because he’s not the low man on the totem anymore and he’s come a long way as a hitter. I’d trust him more in a clutch situation than the left fielder. Plus, it would be better to have speed and the liberal swinger batting 8.

*Mijares joins Torres on DL. Valdez warming seat for Bond, Noonan or Tanaka. Peguero could be warming Torres’ seat. He’ll have to come out of gate hitting.

Lefty

Anthony Rizzo is the name you’re looking for.

I’d have to agree that it will be hard for Belt to be voted onto an All-Star team as long as Votto’s around.

Fighting Bam Bams lose 10-6 to Japan. Gotta think Sir Hensley’s opening some eyes with his Cinderella WBC team and two World Series rings. Might this be his last season with the Giants before he moves up and becomes a manager somewhere? Five languages, too.

Lefty

Foothills: Maybe Hembree will be called up by June after Pac’s TV has gone into the pool. That bullpen looks a bit…unimposing. Fingers crossed that Runzler really has figured it out and that Kontos keeps coming along. Kontos looked really good on Sunday. Sounds like everyone was pleased with Hembree yesterday.

Affeldt looked great for Team USA the other night, but Lopez is behind schedule, Mijares is injured, Romo’s been shaky, and Casilla’s been Casilla. (Saw where Angel hit a triple off him the other night–Angel’s good at triples.)

And yeah, Pegs didn’t take one decent at-bat the whole weekend. I’m worried, too. However, Blanco looked good–triple on Saturday, manufactured a run with his speed on Sunday, gliding around CF like he does. As long as he stays fine, whatever about Pegs/Torres/Gillespie.

I’d sure like to see Noonan or Bond get a shot at that utility role. But what did you do with Pill? Is he just out of luck?

Pill is SOL. He hasn’t played any LF or 3B like the skipper hinted at earlier.

If they had another upper level first baseman, Pill would be traded. His option saves his skin. Come see Pill hit bombs in Fresno! Should they feel the need for some pop off the bench, he’d be the guy. Too bad Scott Hairston is not he guy. He ain’t making much more than Andres Torres.

I thought Romo looked pretty good shutting the door on Team USA. He also looked feisty in that NAFTA battle.

Lefty

Assuming things go down as they probably will, the Fresno Grizzlies could be pretty good:

“He moved the ball to both sides of the plate as well as I’ve seen this spring. The ball was coming out on a good plane. He was working downhill.”

I thought only Krukow could come up that kind of contentless quote It’s not his job to fill the dailies with wisdom but as Alex points out, Posey keeps what he’s thinking under lock and key. Something to look for in the future is Buster getting ahead of the press and having some fun with them. Normally he’ll be the smartest guy in the room, so it could happen sometime soon.

Foothills Ryan

Mitch Lively, Lefty.

Bapah

Test

Bapah

Just as I thought; SJMN is the last in America to set their clocks forward. Pavs wake up the folks back home.

ClutchUp

Bam bam is moving on up.

His outerspace trip is 2014.

ClutchUp

Time should be fixed….soon.

Anti-Lasorda

Did anybody else happen to catch the fact that Bam-Bam had his squad in black uni’s? The Dutch national color is orange, so of course that was represented…..

So in other words, it was black and orange mojo….

I caught a glimpse of a highlight or two and thought they were the G’s until I turned the sound up….

Lefty, tell your Cardinals fan, we still have at least one more run. With Timmy and Pence up at the end of the year, this maybe it, but we gots one more…….

Jobu likes Black and Orange…. makes him think it’s Halloween.

The Oracle

I don’t necessarily mean voted in, but he will be an All Star, which means his stats will be better than just about everyone on your list of first basemen. I don’t know why people are doubting me on this. I didn’t get this name by accident.

Bapah

Oracle,
Could you be a little less definitive with your proclamations?

Oracle = an utterance, often ambiguous or obscure, given by a agency or medium at a shrine as the response of a god to an inquiry.

Lefty

Oracle: I still remember Pablo getting passed over for All-Star in 2009. Absolutely outrageous. He had 15 HRs and over 50 RBI and was hitting well over .300. Finished the season at .330 (2nd in NL), 25/90. David Wright was voted the starter that year, and Pablo was having a much better season. (Then Mets fans had the nerve to complain when the tables were turned last year. At least Wright got to go in 2012.)

Anyway, this was an example of a young, less famous player having a stellar year and getting snubbed. However, the X factor this time is Bochy: If Belt is deserving and doesn’t get voted in, he’ll go.

Oh, Oracle, do you have a Giant winning the Cy this year? Cain? MadBum? A stellar comeback for Lincecum? The cherry on the sundae for Vogelsong? (And how cool is it that you can name FOUR Giants’ starters as possible Cy candidates and not one is ridiculous? And #5 has won the Cy before. Name one other rotation where that is possible. I don’t think there is one.)

JStreet

But then he (she) wouldn’t be an oracle. We should be lucky for such prescience in our presence. But they still have to play the games.

Lefty

Other rotations where all five are either legitimate Cy candidates and/or former Cy winners:

Phillies: Two former Cy winners (Lee & Halladay) and a third who’s a definite candidate (Hamels). Nope on #4-5.

Dodgers: Two former Cy winners (Kershaw & Greinke), but no other real candidates unless Ryu turns out to be a sleeper.

Reds: Cueto and Latos: Either could win a Cy if they put a good year together. None of the others, unless maybe Chapman turns out to be a stud in the rotation.

Tigers: Verlander is a former Cy winner. The other three (Fister, Sanchez, Scherzer) are all very good, but Cy candidates? Not so far.

Nats: Strasburg and Gio are definitely Cy candidates. Zimmermann could be, but he’s a notch below the other two. Haren is a great pitcher but probably too old and too injury-limited for a Cy season. Detwiler could be an interesting dark-horse candidate. He seems pretty good.

Any other contenders, or dissenting views?

JStreet

Oracle, IF you were less definitive, you’d have to call yourself The Wishful Thinker. But keep thinking..

The Oracle

I prefer this definition: a person with great wisdom or someone believed to have communication with a deity. (noun)

The Oracle

Lefty, I only see those two things. Belt the All Star and the Dodgers flopping. Hopefully, no one remembers my call for Zito’s retirement last spring.

http://nada paul in p.v.

Whatever schadenfreude is tempting about Greinke’s status is tempered by the knowledge that Freak has only thrown 1 inning so far this year.

But remember when Greinke was playing out the string in KC, and admitted he wasn’t throwing his slider – i.e., saving his arm for free agency? I got a feeling he’s gonna be another Jason Schmidt for the diggers.

oil can boyd

Giants will sign Gaudin to make sure they have another good luck Cajun for this year like Fontenot in 2010 and Theriot in 2012. Gaudin is such a Bayou- dweller he named his son Gunter GATOR Gaudin.

Foothills Ryan

Strasburg or Kershaw for the NL CY. 2 dog race. Giants pitchers will push for votes to land them in top 10.

What was it exactly that The Oracle told Papa Oedipus? It probably wasn’t word for word that your baby boy here is going to knock you off and sleep with the old lady. More cryptic, I agree with Bapah.

Not just any oracle, The Oracle !

ClutchUp

Bingo Long and his Allstars!

Bapah-Woodie: at the beep the time is 1018 PST

Bapah

Clutch, you’re always on top of things, it seems. When’s the next eclipse?

Bapah

For those of you that think that playing in AZ is pretty much the same as playing @ATT, well…

Sorry, formatting lost and this is for a batted ball (all other things being equal).

ClutchUp

Baps: Those kinds of predictions are out of my realm, heck I cannot even make the right decisions coaching third base.

Last night I reverted back to Wendell Kim – one guy out at home – one guy out at third and one kid who tried taking third after he doubled home a run AND as YOU so very well know – the ‘dang’ runner was already in scoring position at second base, but he had to pull and Abbot and Costello out of his rear end and try to take third, STANDING UP mind you.

Ahhh but we won. Winning is a the deodorant to playing sloppy

Hey guys and gals: Check out the Flann Man, has our G’s working on the basics of small ball.

Batter/runner basics: B/R HAS to look at the base coach. Teaching the right thing to do on the bases is often harder than teaching almost any other fundamental skill. They all prefer to watch the ball, only. Your kid needs to know that most times it WON’T work that way. Glad you won; last week was just the burden we have to bear.

Bapah

Oh, wait; was he out or safe @ 3rd?

channelclemente

Foothills,

that’ll work with the column, but when you reverse flow it usually you loose phase. Watch for broadening or shoulders, although your gradient may make that irrelevant. Sometimes, you have to tweak your integrator settings as well.

ClutchUp

He made the first out of the inning at third. Cardinal sin error and made it worse by standing up. IMO – the base ump bangs him out EVEN if he was safe due to the knuckle-headed-ness of the brain cramp. This is one of the better Baseball IQ kids on the team, he just thought he was gonna be a stat – hero and move to third on the throw home over the head of their cut off man. The opposing catcher made a nice manuever, as the throw home was coming in off line, he left the dish, went and met the throw and threw to third in plenty of time.

Man, the Yankees must be desperate. They are looking at 37-8 yearold Derek Lee and are trying to get Chipper Jones to come out of retirement to play 3B.

Foothills Ryan

I think the Yankees are being more measured than desperate. Considering they are expecting Grandyman and Tex back in the May-June part of calendar, they seem right by just looking for a stop gap. Desperate would be to make a reactionary trade. Aubrey Huff???

Foothills Ryan

If I was Clutch, the kids would be doing a lot of running around the bases the next practice. I might do some practice waving them in or holding them up as well. Work on the emphatic SLIDE!! signal also. Reward em with a scrimmage at the end of running. Hard work should always have its rewards.

Bapah

I had a coach in HS that had his whistle taped to the end of a coat hanger. We would have got a slap with it to our batting helmet.

Foothills Ryan

My varsity coach challenged me to a throw down in front of the whole team at practice once because I had bad body language when he’d pull me from the game. He was probably pissed that I took a bat to his lockers in the shed after a short outing on the hill. He was an a-whole, but I probably deserved it. I was frustrated after losing 5 mph on fastball after a slight tear or strain of rotator cuff for pancake breakfast scrimmage weekend at beginning of season. Went from all league JR year to not all league SR.

channelclemente

Foothills,

sounds like you should mosey over to Davis when the adult leagues start in the Spring. Great bunch of explayers with 70-80 MPH FB.

NotRunItt

Clutch,

Nobody cares about your high school coaching escapades.

Wall Pipp

All the fellows up here care. It’s that “I” NRI who we have no room for up here. Sure sounds like NRI is really RI.

Toodles, the wives are cooking up some good grub right now.

NotRunItt

As I have explained earlier, NRI is not the same as RI. I will change my handle to Numb Nuts so there is no more confusion.

Foothills Ryan

CC, just signed up for league in Fresno. I haven’t played since 09, but played 4 or 5 years prior. Yup, that’s me, 70-80. I think I broke 80 a few years ago when arm felt great mid-summer.

JStreet

No need to changs handles,,as most here would prefer that you change locations instead.

As for Clutch, I know I’m not alone in being interested in his HS team and its escapades. Many of us are I tested in the information shared here.

What I’m having trouble figuring out, – but still interested – is the running discussion between CC and Foothill regarding channel columns, integrators, and the like. Beam me up..

Foothills Ryan

CC is the resident chemist. I may very well be the resident plant pathologist but am involved in a project that involves some chemistry. I occasionally ask for advice relating to liquid chromatography (analyte separation). Then I usually ignore advice because CC shoots way over my head and I treat everything like plumbing. I hope I’m not melting the pipes. I better stop dumping acetone down the drain

Matthew

Oracle, didn’t Deity Cruz play infield for us in the 80′s? Keep talking to him